1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to pharmaceutical compositions which are suitable, in particular, for blood purification, especially of dialysis solutions employed during treatments applied in individuals suffering from renal insufficiency.
2. Technology Review
A number of kidney diseases lead to chronic renal insufficiency, the capacity for concentrating the urine and the possibilities of excretion being impaired; this results in cardiovascular, digestive and neuromuscular disorders. When a transplantation cannot be performed, haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis make it possible to compensate for renal function. Acute renal insufficiency, certain types of poisoning, hepatic coma and severe electrolytic disorders may also be treated by dialysis.
Solutions for dialysis generally contain an osmotic agent, ions and a substance having buffering power, as well as various optional additives.
The most commonly used osmotic agent is glucose; however, a portion of this glucose can cross the peritoneal membrane, so that the patient absorbs 50 to 300 g of it per day. This phenomenon causes serious problems during the dialysis of some patients; thus, it can interfere with the treatment of diabetic patients and promote the appearance of lipid disorders and obesity.
To remedy these drawbacks, it has been proposed to add insulin to the dialysis solution or to employ other osmotic agents such as other sugars or polyols. However, these products also have drawbacks: they are toxic, accumulate, or cause a polyurea or a rise in lactic acid. Thus, for example, glycerol, which has been proposed in International Application No. Pct/U.S. 82/00488 , passes rapidly across the peritoneal membrane and makes it necessary to resort to higher concentrations than those of glucose, which eventually lead to a weight gain by the patient.
A pharmaceutical composition that is usable for blood purification, and which enables these drawbacks to be remedied, has now been found.